THE NEW FOOTBALL PITCH REPLACES THE PREVIOUS ONE - BUILT BACK IN 2002 BY MONDO – WHICH IS STILL PERFECTLY USABLE BUT NO LONGER FIT FOR PURPOSE DUE TO RECENT CHANGES IN REGULATIONS. TODAY, THE TWELVE TEAMS THAT HAVE ALWAYS TRAINED AND BEEN PUT THROUGH THEIR PACES AT GALLO GRINZANE CAN CONTINUE TO DO SO ON A PITCH THAT COMPLIES WITH NEW REGULATIONS AND HAS ALSO BEEN IMPROVED AS A SPORTS FACILITY.
In 2002, Mondo built the Grinzane Cavour artificial turf football pitch, just a few miles away from the company's headquarters. As well as providing an opportunity to work in its own area, the pitch marked an important moment for the company because it was the first artificial turf pitch to be installed in Italy. However, over the years, new LND (National Amateur League) regulations had been introduced and the pitch was no longer up to standard even if it was in excellent condition. (Watch the full interview by clicking here!)
Indeed, “it gave us great satisfaction to see that the original pitch in artificial turf and Ecofill® infill had lasted and performed so well over these sixteen years” Luca Aimasso from the Mondo Technical Department, who was involved in the project back in 2002, said.
Aimasso added: “We are also proud to have fully met the project deadlines by using advanced technologies to remove the existing surface in just a few days. That's not all: during this operation, the surface was detached from the performance infill and the surface reused in part to recondition areas surrounding the pitch”.
The work also involved laying drainage pipes at the sides, a new irrigation system, FIGC-compliant benches and a hundred seats for the stand, with a total cost of € 335,000, received from the Fondazione CRC and the European Union with sports funding.
The new pitch was finally officially opened on 9 October 2018 in the presence of the mayor of Grinzane Cavour, Gianfranco Garau, the Chairman of Langa Calcio, Nicola Parusso, the Euro MP, Alberto Cirio, Giuliano Viglione of the Fondazione CRC, Roberto Passone, President of the Union of “Colline di Langa e Barolo” Municipalities, Enrico Giacca, Regional Councillor of the FIGC and several prominent figures in the area. Gianfranco Garau had this to say: “We are very pleased with the pitch that has just been built. It was our duty as a municipality to continue to support this sports facility because football has been playing an important part in our area for at least 30 years through voluntary associations. With the old pitch, the association helped to promote football, a sport that has offered children a healthy lifestyle and therefore added value for our citizens. This structure has two main qualities: it can be used every weekend even when the climatic conditions are bad and has a wide catchment area; our pitch is a point of reference for all the surrounding municipalities and a lot of children use this facility.”
And – we would like to add – they will continue to use it for a long time to come.
Watch the complete interviews with Nicola Parusso and Gianfranco Garau